


What Might Have Been

by Nysonia



Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-01
Updated: 2014-08-01
Packaged: 2018-02-11 07:49:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2059959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nysonia/pseuds/Nysonia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I just felt like Madam Red's backstory with her husband and almost-child could have been touched on a bit more.</p><p>This was really fun to write, though! I took the liberty of giving Baron Burnett a first name. Although, everytime I pictured him in my mind with that name, I thought of Jeremiah Gottwald from Code Geass. Whoops.</p><p>Anyway, enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	What Might Have Been

Angelina had worn an older dress to this particular ball, but she still thought she looked marvelous in it. It was short-sleeved and mainly red, with touches of black here and there. She accented the dress with black evening gloves and a thin red choker, but it seemed to all be for nothing. This ball was a bust, and that was sugarcoating it. She had danced with a few men already but had quickly grown tired of the host's taste in music. She turned around to spot any sort of a servant to fetch her a drink, but accidentally bumped into someone else.

"Oh! Excuse me, Madam Red." He stepped back and bowed, extending his right hand. "I simply came over to see if you would favor me with your hand in this next dance."

He was dressed in a crisp, black dress coat with a low-cut waistcoat and bow tie. She smiled sweetly, bound by social stigma to seem polite and impartial to any suitor that asked to dance. She set her hand in his and replied, "With pleasure, sir."

He straightened and led her to the outskirts of the dancers, and pulled her close. They exchanged a few words, mainly an introduction on his end, and she discovered that he was the Baron Burnett.

"I'm not stepping on anyone's toes, am I? You seemed very willing to dance, even though you never showed me your card."

"No, not at all. I'm actually acting as someone's chaperone tonight. She's a delightful young thing, a friend of my sister's, but my sister couldn't attend tonight. How could I refuse coming to such a delightful ball?"

He smirked slightly and leaned in. "I was under the impression that you and the Duchess LaMotta were not on the best of terms?"

"Oh? Wherever did you hear that rumor?" She was surprised; she hadn't thought that he was the type to gossip.

Embarrassed, he stuttered, "Ah, so it was nothing but a rumor. You two get along, then?"

"Now, now, just because I said it was a rumor doesn't mean that it isn't true."

He chuckled and pulled her in slightly to narrowly avoid a collision with the dancers next to them, but the lady managed to step on the back of Angelina's dress and it tore.

"Oh no! I apologize, I'll fetch a maid to fix that immediately!"

He stepped back and began to raise his hand to get some attention from the wait-servants, but she pulled his arm back down and placed it on her waist. "Nonsense, we can finish this dance first. It's a small tear."

Without missing a beat, he fell back into step with her and resumed dancing. "Remind me after this dance, then, to leave you with my address. You can send me the bill for the repair."

"What, for this old thing? No, I think it's time I retired this dress anyway."

"Really? I think you look marvelous in it. Red definitely suits you."

She blushed deep enough to match the rest of her attire, but brushed off his statement anyway. "Of course! Why else would I be known as Madam Red?"

"Whatever made you decide to wear that color so often? I mean, everyone has a favorite color, but I can only think of you and a grieving widow when I think of someone with only one color in their wardrobe." The words themselves came off brashly, but the thought behind them was simple curiosity and jest.

She glanced down, feigning a sudden interest in the hem of her glove for a moment before replying, "It's just as you say. Red definitely suits me."

The dance finally came to an end and he held his arm out for her to take. He escorted her back over towards her seat, but saw that it was taken. "To what part of the hall shall I take you?"

"Ah, it looks as though my friend is still dancing." She paused for a moment and debated where she should go to sit. As she surveyed the room, she happened to glance at the man standing in front of her. Something in her mind just went _Ah, what the hell_ as she smiled and held out her own hand. "Would you mind going for another dance?"

He took her hand and bowed slightly. "Gladly, my lady."

Their next dance was less awkward now that they had been acquainted, but the orchestra played a rather long song. Afterwards, Burnett led her back to her seat and found that it was now empty. Bowing, he said, "Thank you very much for the pleasure of dancing with you."

She bowed back, silently and with a polite smile. Taking her seat, she thought about how much she enjoyed going to balls as well as how much she hated the etiquette of balls.

After a few more dances, the lady she was accompanying returned and they left about an hour before the ball actually ended. It was only when she got home and hung her dress over the back of a chair that she remembered the tear in her dress.

***

A few weeks later, she received an invitation from her sister to chaperone her friend again to a large ball Sir Winston was having that weekend. "I _did_ just get that brand new dress," she mused out loud to no one in particular, "it'd be such a shame to wait any longer to wear it."

She and her guest arrived a little late after the latter's indecision on which style of dress to wear. She had finally decided on a lighter colored dress, befitting of someone as blonde as her. She was quite surprised as the night went on to find Baron Burnett there as well. He didn't spot her until later in the night, but promptly asked her for a dance as soon as he did.

"I see you are no longer wearing that dress with the tear, did it ever get fixed?"

"Ah!" she exclaimed. "I forgot all about that. I imagine it did, but I never explicitly ordered it to be repaired. I don't think I'll wear that old thing to balls as extravagant and large as this one."

"I don't know, I thought you looked amazing in it." After a moment he blushed and stammered, "Not that you don't look equally as wonderful now. You might even look nicer!"

She chuckled, saying, "Thank you. You have a tendency to put your foot in your mouth a lot, don't you, Lord Burnett?"

He reached up to scratch the back of his head. "I suppose I do, Madam Red."

"Please, call me Angelina."

"In that case, call me Jeremiah."

***

In the following week, she received a letter from Lord Burnett inviting her to a ball and apologizing for not being better acquainted with her first. This continued often, and she found herself looking forward to seeing him at the various balls until he eventually invited her over for tea.

She carefully picked out a pleasant dress that was spotted with black fringe and details, going out of her way to look as nice as possible. When she arrived and was directed towards the tea room, she found him already sitting in surprisingly formal attire.  He stood and bowed, extending a hand towards the other seat. "Ah! Madam Red, please, have a seat."

She moved across from him and they sat down together. "The view is lovely." She nodded towards the open windows that were nearly floor-to-ceiling to their right, which overlooked a large pond down a hill and a small garden that extended below the windows. She noted that the majority of the flowers planted there were red.

"Yes, I hoped you would enjoy it. I picked this room for tea because I thought you might." He paused for a moment before adding, "That dress you're wearing..."

She looked down, forgetting precisely which dress she had worn. Was it not to his liking? She had worked so hard to look nice today. "Yes?"

"It's rather similar to the one you wore when we met, isn't it?"

She smiled, relieved. "Yes, I suppose it is."

"Hm. I like it, you look radiant in it."

Their pleasant chatter continued for several minutes as they were served tea and a type of coffee cake.

"Is there a particular reason you invited me here, Lord Burnett?"

He took in a deep breath and stood, walking around the table to stand next to her. "Actually, yes, there is." He hovered for a moment, as if unsure. Finally, he steeled his nerves and knelt next to her chair, taking her hand. "Angelina, you make me so very happy. Would you do me the pleasure of marrying me?"

She teared up a little and looked past him, out the windows. "I'm-," he sighed, "I'm so sorry. Is there someone else?"

"No." She thought back to the previous day, when she had visited her sister's and seen everyone she loved: Rachel, Ciel, and especially Vincent. "Not really. Just a man I can't forget."

"Even so, I don't mind." He put his other hand on her arm. "I'm happy with you, and if you're happy with me too, then that's all I needed to hear." He stood slowly and moved to return to his seat, but she stopped him by grabbing his arm.

"Wait. I haven't answered yet." He looked back, and she saw something akin to hopefulness in his eyes. Could she really refuse a suitor as good as him, simply because she had an unrequited love for her sister's husband? "Of course I'll marry you, Jeremiah."

***

It wasn't long after their marriage that Angelina noticed she was showing a few signs of pregnancy. She went to the doctor discreetly the following morning and had her thoughts- or rather, fears- confirmed.

On the ride back, she couldn't deny how excited she was to finally have a family of her own. She daydreamed of all of the fun timed Ciel could have with his new cousin, and pondered over whether it would be a girl or a boy. What would they name it? Would Jeremiah be as ecstatic as she was? Would every fear she's ever had about having a child of her own come true? By the time the carriage pulled up to the front door, she had worried herself to the point of wondering if she should even tell Jeremiah yet. She had no idea how to bring it up.

She waited until dinner that evening before she said, "Jeremiah. There's... well, there's something I need to tell you."

He picked up on the worried tone in her voice and slowly put down his fork. "What is it?"

"I didn't go to my sister's today. I went to see a doctor."

His face flushed and he tensed instantly. "What's wrong? Have you not been feeling well? So that _was_ a lie the other day; you really did throw up."

"Nothing's wrong, really, it's just- it's just that we're going to have a child."

He spaced out for a moment. "You... wait. What? You're pregnant?"

She smiled and chuckled, watching him get up and move over to her. He gently placed a hand on her belly and said, "How far along did they say?"

"The nurse said he thought it was about two months along. The doctor said she thought it was probably closer to three, though."

He didn't say anything, just laughed a little and rubbed her stomach. All of a sudden, he looked up and said, "Oh no. What will we name it? Do you even want children? I know you love your nephew to bits... Do you think anything will go wrong? They say that people miscarry a lot their first time, what if we lose it?"

She leaned down and kissed him. "Relax." She was glad to see that he was just as worried - and excited- as she was. "We'll manage."

***

Five months later, she sat in the parlor, exhausted after a long day of playing with Ciel. She loved spending time with him, but he was just so full of energy and she was getting to be rather large by now. Someone knocked at the door and startled, and Jeremiah poked his head in.

"Ah, I thought I'd find you in here. Long day?" He knelt beside her and took her hand.

"Ugh, I'm positively exhausted. I just want to go to sleep."

He leaned in and rested his head on her stomach. "A boy? Or a girl?"

She laughed lightly and wrapped her arms around his neck, saying, "Men are so impatient! We don't know at the moment."

"I just can't wait to know. What will we name it if it was a boy?"

 _Vincent,_ she thought at first. _No, that wouldn't be fair to Jeremiah._ Finally she settled on something else. "If it's a boy, you can name him whatever you want."

"What if it's a girl?"

"...Vinette."

"I like that name. A lovely name for a lovely girl," he crooned to her stomach.

"What about it? What would you name him?"

He sat back for a few moments and stared at the ceiling, deep in thought. "Probably Thomas. I had a friend named Thomas when I was younger, but he passed away after we became friends. He reminds me a lot of you." He stood up and put a hand on her cheek, adding, "He's not _quite_ as pretty as you, though."

***

The following week, he held her hand and helped her through the streets as they walked towards a small shop in London. They were about three blocks from their destination when they heard a commotion behind them. They turned around just as the carriage hit them, and she heard something snap. She opened her eyes and saw the underside of a carriage, not remembering how she got there.

"A horse carriage went out of control and hit someone!" The words seemed distant and strange, as if they were coming from somewhere else- anywhere else.

She looked over and saw Jeremiah lying next to her, arms wrapped around her stomach. She suddenly remembered the accident and being hit as the same person called out, "Someone get a doctor!"

She saw various spatters of blood around her, but didn't have time to investigate who they came from. Her first priority was her child's safety. "Jeremiah. Jeremiah, we need to get out from under here. Jeremiah?" She looked up to see if he was unconscious, but noted that the snapping sound she had heard earlier must have been his neck when she saw how disfigured and contorted it was. "J-Jeremiah? Don't move, okay? They're getting a doctor. If you-" She choked on something, but went on anyway. "If you move you could h-hurt yourself." She scooted closer and grabbed his hand, pulling it up to her face and kissing it. "Just- just don't move. It'll be okay."

***

She was listening to the doctor tell her about the procedure they had just done, but it was almost as if the words bounced off of her. Surely this didn't actually happen to her, right? She would wake up and Jeremiah would be lying next to her, and she would hate the morning because she always felt so sick but at least it would be better than this.

 _No wait,_ she thought, _this can't possibly be a dream. I'm married to Jeremiah, right? I'm never married to Jeremiah in my dreams, I'm married to-_ She stopped herself before she could finish that thought, ashamed that it was true.

Finally, the doctor stopped apologizing and moved to leave. "Wait," she pleaded. He stopped and moved back towards her bedside. "Please," she choked out, "Can you please just tell me if it was a boy or a girl?"


End file.
